Professionals, 16. May 2019
After making it two home wins out of two under Nico Willig last weekend, VfB will be hoping that the trend continues this Saturday against FC Schalke 04 (15:30 CEST).
Although Matchday 34 will have little effect on the final table for either team, it comes just a week before the relegation play-off first leg in the Mercedes-Benz Arena, making it of critical importance for Nico Willig and his men. "We’re a week away from a ‘final’, and we need to make sure that we have the right things in place already when we face Schalke," said Willig 48 hours before the match. "We’re talking about possession, movement and shutting down counter-attacks. They’ll be crucial in the relegation play-offs and therefore they’ll be crucial here on Saturday as well."
The 38-year-old caretaker manager refused to rule out playing Anastasios Donis, Ozan Kabak and Emiliano Insua, all of whom are on four yellow cards and therefore just one booking away from a ban. He will likely have to do without three players due to injury however, with the Schalke match coming a little too early for Andreas Beck (knee cartilage), Steven Zuber (knee) and Erik Thommy (ankle) to make a return. "As far as Erik is concerned, we hope that he’ll be able to put his hand up for selection next Thursday. Steven, meanwhile, trained again today for the first time, but with no ball contact."